PITTSBURGH —After hiring Mike McCarthy as his next head coach, the 17th in Pittsburgh Steelers history and a trend-breaker in many ways, Steelers president Art Rooney II said he didn't care about winning the press conference.
Frankly, given the fan vitriol surrounding the announcement of the hiring, I thought it was a good thing he wasn't concerned with winning it, because it didn't seem possible.
But when McCarthy's voice cracked as he read his prepared statement to the assembled crowd of reporters in the Champions Club of Acrisure Stadium and the thousands watching from home, I think for the first time I really understood the reason that Rooney made the decision he did, when he did.
I don't know if McCarthy changed any minds about his hire on Tuesday. But from my seat, he at least came pretty darn close to winning that press conference, when it appeared nearly impossible.
And look, there are still plenty of good reasons to be skeptical about the Steelers' hiring of McCarthy, the rigorousness of the process that led them to make that decision, and whether it will lead the Steelers to a seventh Super Bowl title or simply more better-than-average seasons.
McCarthy has a strong resume. That's never been in question. He's right on the borderline of being a Hall of Fame head coach, before he even walks in the door. He's helped to develop at least one Hall of Fame quarterback in Aaron Rodgers, and there was no one else in the market that can say they've done that with any degree of certainty.
What the hire of McCarthy lacked compared to the potential of the Steelers going with a younger coach that so much of the fanbase seemed to want was energy. The Steelers in the latter portion of Mike Tomlin 's tenure had good records, but felt stale, with a lack of urgency to innovate
They were a good team without a clear and obvious path to become a great one. McCarthy's last job, with the Dallas Cowboys , was mostly the same story. He won 12 games in three of his five seasons, but just one playoff contest.
It's extremely fair to wonder how someone who couldn't get it done with peak-career Dak Prescott is going to be able to do it with 43-year-old Rodgers or untested sixth-round draft pick Will Howard.
But youthful exuberance isn't the only way to build energy within a team. And McCarthy has something that none of the other candidates could boast: a Mount Washington-sized helping of give-a-damn. His opening statement, delivered through choked-back tears, is a perfect testament to that sentiment.
"Oftentimes, coaches and players, you put on new team colors, and it takes a minute to feel comfortable in those new colors," he read. "But to be blessed beyond any measure one day to put on the colors you wore since you were brought home when you come home from Mercy Hospital."
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy during his introductory press conference on Jan. 27, 2026. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
In that moment, I don't want to say that my previous criticisms of the process evaporated, but for the first time I got it. I understood what Rooney saw in McCarthy to decide that was the guy he wanted to hire.
One of the people I thought the Steelers should have interviewed if they wanted to have a more thorough process was former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel. McDaniel is an offensive mastermind, there's little question about that.
His ability to be a cultural leaders of a program is definitely another story. McDaniel has taken press conferences over the years with a devil-may-care attitude that borders on nihilism. How could you listen to McCarthy fight through tears about his family finally being able to proudly wear their black and gold and decide you now need to go interview the guy who answers questions with some version of, "well, none of it matters, because we're all going to die."
I'm not saying that McDaniel is unprofessional or incapable of being a good head coach. I just think that — for the Pittsburgh Steelers — it's hard to make a good argument that someone like him is a better fit, no matter how much more innovative his offense is. Yes, X's and O's matter, but the job of a head football coach is first and foremost to be a culture-setter for the franchise.
McCarthy understands what it means to put on that uniform, both to the people in the building, and to the crowd that was so angered by his hiring. He cares more. It means more to him. And while the hiring process, and the surrounding conversation about this Rooney's stewardship of the team is probably still going to have loud detractors, I've got a feeling that it's going to be hard for Pittsburghers to stay mad at McCarthy for very long.
Congratulations, Mike, you just won an unwinnable press conference. It's a good thing, because the near-term outlook for the team is only marginally better than that of the public sentiment entering the day on Tuesday. Winning in an unwinnable-lookng situation is basically the job that he signed up for. And McCarthy's Yinzer bonafides won't work on the rest of the NFL.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now : Saunders: Mike McCarthy Starts 1-0 vs. the Unwinnable
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